Starting from the Planetary Governor - Chapter 656

Chapter 654, Signs of Collapse

Did Le Luwa really not know the impending danger?

Not necessarily.

Initially, he had indeed ignored Gu Hang’s warnings, for the same reason he had criticized Gu Hang in the meeting before. He didn’t think Gu Hang was acting for the benefit of the war on the northern front, but rather, he saw Gu Hang’s claims as fabricated and exaggerated to hinder the northern advance and secure the highest honor of the war.

However, as irrefutable evidence after irrefutable evidence was presented to him, he, not being completely clueless, naturally changed his mind.

In fact, his mindset shifted under those repeated “sincere” warnings.

On the one hand, he developed a slight respect for Gu Hang.

Not everyone can, when truly crucial, put aside past grudges and offer sincere warnings for the sake of the ultimate goal.

On the other hand, he grew increasingly determined to conquer Rheaduches as quickly as possible and achieve final victory.

It wasn’t that he distrusted Gu Hang’s intelligence; on the contrary, he had taken it seriously, and that was why he was acting this way.

Once words were spoken, they could not be taken back. Even if he had changed his mind, he couldn’t change his words publicly; that would only undermine his prestige.

He was the commander and the leader of the alliance, but not the founder or leader of this army.

The most he could do was to stop talking about these matters and let them pass.

While there would inevitably be murmurs, as long as things didn’t escalate into open opposition, it proved that everything was under control.

Meanwhile, after careful consideration, Leroy concluded that there was no turning back.

The Alliance’s approach of steadily addressing the issues at hand was no longer possible. The situation in the Lefo and Jianmen star regions was already dire due to the Zerg invasion. Due to their previous rapid advance, they hadn’t even completely eliminated the Zerg fleet, leaving some behind, not to mention the Zerg forces and Infested on various planets.

Previously, they had believed that everything was manageable. The enemy had been dispersed, and the remaining threats were limited to the star region level or even the multi-sector level, effectively a “local threat.” Entering the Princess Sector and capturing Readuches would be considered a victory on the campaign level. The noble Space Marines wouldn’t have to deal with the rest of the cleanup; let the rebuilt local government and the Empire figure it out.

But now, the situation is proving incredibly complex, and they’ve already reached such a point, with Readuches already within sight. Turning back is impossible. Even

if Leroy issued such an order, his coalition forces would support him and return with him to clean up the mess. However, according to the intelligence provided by Gu Hang, the Zerg could very well trigger the complete transformation of all infected in the two sectors, similar to what happened to Gu Hang’s side.

Furthermore, since they had only dispersed, not yet eliminated, the Zerg fleet, the Lefo and Jianmen sectors would likely become a massive quagmire of war. By then, Leroy and his army would have trouble escaping, let alone winning the war!

From this point of view, even if victory is not mentioned, the only way to preserve his own army is to move forward bravely and conquer Readuces!

He has even stopped thinking about what to do if the war is not over after the conquest and the expected victory is still far away.

He has no choice.

An internal military meeting was held again, in which Le Roux once again gave an excellent speech.

He did not mention Gu Hang at all, but only emphasized that the current situation is critical for survival, but everything is not at the end of the road. Everyone should cheer up and fight with their backs to the wall, so that they can fight their way out in this critical moment.

However, this time his speech to boost morale was not as effective as before.

Everyone can see that it is dangerous now.

The key point is that this danger stems from Leroy’s consistently aggressive strategy.

His eloquence doesn’t offer much room for maneuver.

Leroy won’t say more.

Let the facts speak for themselves.

On the march toward Rhaeadouce, Leroy personally commanded the advance, deploying his most trusted and reliable forces, the two Black Crusaders’ fleets, and engaged in several brilliant battles of annihilation. They annihilated two local forces in the Princess Sector, responsible for reconnaissance and delaying the enemy, and captured a planet with excellent infrastructure, using it as a reserve for the entire army. Simultaneously, the entire army advanced rapidly, and Rhaeadouce was now within reach of two astral shuttles.

The persuasive power of victory is stronger than words.

A week later, the newly energized army finally arrived at Rhaeadouce.

Here, they achieved a truly glorious victory.

The word “glorious” certainly doesn’t mean they captured their objective without a single blow.

Quite the contrary: the Ironclad Chapter maintained a formidable defense in their home base. Starports, star forts, planetary void shields, densely packed orbital gun fortresses… every necessary defensive infrastructure was in place. There was even a formidable mobile fleet stationed there. Meanwhile, over a thousand Ironclad Space Marines had been sighted in combat, not to mention the exceptional auxiliary forces of the Imperial Legion, which rivaled the might of renowned Astra Militarum units.

Yet, under Leroy’s offensive, they defeated the enemy in a single month.

While the planet wasn’t completely captured, the key strategic points mentioned above were already under their control.

Leroy then eagerly relayed the news of his victory to all parties.

Western Front, Southern Front, Holy Terra…

Besides the victory reports, he also pragmatically stated that they would remain on Rheaduches for a period of time, eliminating resistance on the ground and strengthening the planet’s defenses, with the restoration of the planetary void shield being a top priority.

They would await a victorious rendezvous with Commander-in-Chief Gu and Chapter Master Salilius.

This news was also the final battle report received by the Imperial forces from the northern front.

On the third day after their conquest of Rheaduches, the shadow of the Warp, obscuring the sun and sky, completely sealed off the Empress Star Domain, preventing any news from escaping.

Meanwhile, Lefo, Jianmen, Anguang, Baimu, and Tangu… the five star regions nominally controlled by the Northern and Western Spider Webs, began experiencing widespread digestion of infected individuals and the rise of biological ships.

This phenomenon even occurred in the Magre Star Domain.

At the same time, the main force of the Ironclad Legion, which Salilius had reportedly defeated, suddenly emerged from the west, from the direction of the Magre Star Domain, encircling Salilius’ main force from west to east.

From the Empress Star Domain, a sizeable Hive Fleet encircled Salilius from east to west.

Meanwhile, Salilius’ main force was still at the border of the Baimu and Empress Star Domains, engaged in clearing out the infected and digestion tanks there.

(End of Chapter)